Dr. Debjani Halder
Additional Professor
Dr. Debjani Halder is a national and international award-winning scholar and filmmaker. She is working as an additional professor of filmmaking and coordinator of certificate courses and microcredentials at the Manipal Institute of Communication, MAHE, Udupi. She has received Fellowship Awards from the National Film Archive of India, the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Rashtrapati Nivas, the European Excellence Fellowship Awards of Central European University, Budapest, the Dr. S. Radhakrishnan Fellowship, the Postdoctoral Fellowship, and the Indian Council of Social Science Research (Ministry of HRD and Government of India). Her documentary Documenting Agony: Ritwik and The Dark fetched several national and international awards. Her documentary “The Ethos of Darkness” received the 69th National Film Award as Best Science and Technology Film. Her recent documentary Khat: A Letter to My Home is selected in SIGNS film festivals and the Cairo International Film Festival, Chalachitram Film Festival, and Assam. It's got a Jury Special Mention in the Chalachitram Film Festival. She got the Excellence Research Award, Government Grant 2023, at the Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal. She is the author of three monographs and has published nearly 40 articles in several national and international journals. Recently she received the Artist and Residence Fellowship Programme by the Art Forum Association Goa, 2025, and Vienna, 2026.
Manipal Institute of Communication
Qualification: PhD in film studies, Jadavpur University, MA (Gold Medallist), Jadavpur University, Former Fellow of the National Film Archive Of India 2022, Former Fellow of the Indian Institute of Advanced Studies, Former European Excellence Fellow - Central European University Budapest, Former Dr.S Radhakrishnan Postdoctoral Fellow, UGC- Calcutta University, Former ICSSR Postdoctoral Fellow JNU, and Former Charles Wallace India Trust Fellow
CURRENT ACADEMIC ROLE & RESPONSIBILITIES
Associate Professor of Filmmaking, Project Director of ICSSR Major Research Grant Project
SUBJECTS CURRENTLY TEACHING
| Subject | Semester / Year |
|---|---|
| Introduction to Film | 4 |
| Film Theory and Criticism | 2 |
ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS
| Degree | Specialisation | Institute | Year of passing |
|---|---|---|---|
| PhD | Film Studies | Jadavpur University | 2011 |
| MA | Social History | Jadavpur University | 2006 |
| BA | History | Presidency College, University of Calcutta | 2004 |
Experience
| Institution / Organisation | Designation | Role | Tenure |
|---|---|---|---|
| RV University | Programme Head of Filmmaking | Teaching Filmmaking, Script Writing, Film Theory, Cinematography and Production Designing | 2022 March 2023 November |
| Chandigarh University | Visiting Faculty of Documentary Filmmaking | Mentoring Documentary Filmmaking | 2022 Jan 2022 Feb |
| Film and Television Institute of India | Associate Professor of Film Appreciation & Film Research Officer | Teaching, Research | 2019 October to 2022 January |
| Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Rashtrapati Nivas | Fellow | Writing a Monograph | 2018 June-2019 September |
| Central European University Budapest | European Excellence Fellow | Research, Teaching | 2018 Jan-2018 June |
| University of Calcutta | Dr. S. Radhakrishnan Fellow | Research, Teaching | 2015- March to 2018 Feb |
| Jawaharlal Nehru University | ICSSR Postdoctoral Fellow | Research | 2013 March-2015 February |
• Film and Television Institute of India & Indian New Wave Cinema: A Pedagogical Transition from Methodological convergence towards New Cognitive Divergence.
• Ethos of Darkness: Swapan Nandy A Magician of the Darkroom
• Trend and Trajectories of Indian Parallel Cinema, the research had done as IIAS fellow in Shimla, Indian Institute of Advanced Study.
• Bodies Across Boundaries: Representing Indian Sex Workers in Post Nineties International Cinema: A Feminist Approach. The research had done as Excellence Research Fellowship at Central European University.
• Polyandry in India: A Sexual Slavery of Women: has done as the UGC-IUC associate in IIAS, Shimla,
• Identity of Motherhood and Indian Cinema, the research was completed as Dr S. Radhakrishnan Postdoctoral Fellow in India, University of Calcutta.
• Shifting identities of Women Protagonist in Post Nineties Indian Alternative Cinema: A Feminist Approach. The project was completed as a postdoctoral fellow of Indian Council of Social Science Research, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India
AREAS OF INTEREST, EXPERTISE AND RESEARCH
Area of Interest
Filmmaking, Script Screen Play, Film Theory and Criticism, Film Curation, Gender and Sexuality studies, Human Rights, Migration
Area of Expertise
Filmmaking, Film Studies, Gender Studies
Area of Research
Indian Parallel Cinema, European Cinema, History of National Cinema and Film Movements, Indian New Wave, Psychoanalysis in Film, Film and Gender, Masculinity Studies, Film Theory
Professional Affiliations & Contributions
- Member of FIPRESCI
- Life Member IAWS
Artist and Social Life: Trajectories of Indian Parallel Cinema
July 2021 Avenel Publication, India, ISBN 978-93-90873-34-0 Debjani Halder
The Rhetorical Construction of Motherhood in Indian Alternative Cinema, the article was published in the book : Critics of Indian Cinema: An Anthology, Edited by MK Raghavendra and VK Josheph
October 2021 ISBN-978-0-615-26033-0 DebjaniHalder
Illuminating Agony: Ritwik
DREAMZ Publication ISBN 978-81-931232-0-1 DebjaniHalder
From Wheel Chair to Margarita: Love and Desire, the article was published in the book ‘Perception and Portrayal of Women with Disabilities: Remapping their Identity’ edited by Nandita Dhawan
Authors press, New Delhi ISBN-13: 978-9386722768 Debjani Halder
Hazar Churashiki Ma to Kalbela” : Political Construction of Love and Intimacy in Naxalite Movement: A Feminist Contemplation. Published in the book Empowering Women, Reflection and Trajectories. By Roy Disari and Guha Priyanka
Manav Prakashan, 2022 September ISBN- 978-93-90462-00-1 Debjani Halder
Magician of the Darkroom: An Anthology
Manav Prakashan July 2023 ISBN - 978-93-90462-10-0 Debjani Halder
Unbalancing Life and Vanquish Manhood: Depiction of Unemployed Hero in Post Partition Indian Cinema (1950s to 1960s), the article published in the book “The Unheard Voice- Challenges of Men" edited by Krishnendu Roy.
September 2023 Red Unicorn Publishing, Sweeden. ISBN-10: 91-89764-46-3 Debjani Halder
The Transition (2009)
Documentary film project
2) Water Sentenced (2010)
Documentary film project
3) Utmost Pain: Their Stories (2011)
Documentary film project
4) Documenting Agony Ritwik (2010)
Documentary film project
5) The Dark (2013)
Documentary film project
6) The Saga of Seven Sisters (2018)
Documentary film project
7) Ethos of Darkness (2022)
Documentary film project
8) Film Project: Durga Durga (2022) (As Costume Designer)
Documentary film project
9) Upcoming Docu-fiction A Sight of distressed mind: Voices from Homeless (January 2024)
Documentary film project